How Quitting Corporate Led Me to Build A Successful Business

13 months ago I gave my resignation, packed up my life in Boston and boarded a plane to Ulsan, South Korea. The six months leading up to that point there was something inside of me that kept pushing me towards Korea. I had no idea what it was or why I was being pushed to pursue an opportunity that would cut my salary by more than half in a country where I was intolerant to most of their cuisine.. but I did it. I trusted whatever it was inside of me pushing me to take the most professional risk of my life.. and never looked back.

Growing up, I always dreamed of living the corporate life. I had this vision of how it would be and since my very first “Take Your Child To Work Day” I immediately fell in love with Human Resources.

I know, I know, *eye roll*. HR has THAT kind of reputation that the only time departments successfully come together is to dodge ours.

I knew early on I wanted to change that. I was determined to. I wanted more than anything to dismantle the stereotype against HR, and for the most part, I have – just only for the companies I worked with… but I wanted to go bigger. I wanted to make a massive change and I knew being in corporate wouldn’t allow that to happen, but I felt stuck.

I was in a position where I was completely unfulfilled, unhappy and lacked a sense of purpose in my work.

I KNEW I was meant for something so much more – and somehow I found myself sitting at my office desk one day, after conducting a major and exhausting layoff, having just completed an application to apply for EPIK (English Program in Korea) ready to take the leap.

The timing couldn’t have been more perfect. My lease to my condo was wrapping up, my car lease was done and I was on the verge of hurling myself off a cliff if I had to conduct another layoff for a company that no longer seemed to have the stability that attracted me to it in the first place. I’ve always had the idea of traveling to Asia, but LIVING THERE? That was never a thought in my mind. But again, there was that push for me to continue with the process and by the time the reality of my decision hit, I was already boarding a plane and en route to start my new life.

To this day, I couldn’t tell you what led me to me South Korea. I’m a pretty spiritual person and believe in the Law of Attraction – so I wholeheartedly believe this was in the cards for me long before I realized it was. Less than 6 months after leaving my corporate job, my position was eliminated. Talk about luck.

Even though I was already dabbling in HR & Leadership consulting, I never believed *I* could ever be an entrepreneur. I certainly didn’t have that kind of money in my bank account, and from what I knew, it required hundreds of thousands of dollars.

But.. as soon as I landed, the path just unfolded with the same theme playing out of me not really sure how it all happened but just remembering the push to get there.

I moved to Asia with a scarcity mindset towards money and frugal as hell. I had piles of debt looming over my head, a credit score that I destroyed to travel the world – which I don’t regret a single part of, but the stress of it killed me.

I started the journey expecting to do it on my own to save myself from having to pay someone to teach me. Although I was making progress, I knew by the time my contract in Asia ended I wouldn’t be anywhere near where I wanted, and that was to leave Asia and never have to work for anybody again.

I had my vision boards, business plans, and piles of notebooks filled with information that was completely overwhelming…

Yet again, I felt this push that I knew all too well, and the next thing I remember I was signing a coaching agreement that would have me investing more than half of my teaching salary into hiring a business coach to get me the results I so desperately wanted.

To this day, the single best decision I ever made in my life, besides following all the little intuitive pushes that got me here, was hiring a business coach. The transformation of my life AND my business happened almost overnight. It wasn’t just purely business, but a lot of inner work (mindset, self-care, etc), too.

I worked past my money mindset issues, fell deeply in love with myself and eliminated my insecurities and resistances I had about achieving my dreams.

It was that experience alone where I learned the importance of investing in yourself.

If you would’ve told me 2 years ago that I would be living in South Korea running a Leadership Coaching & Consultant business, I would’ve laughed in your face while secretly wishing it to be true. That’s because my mindset back then was that I was completely undeserving and a nobody, but today I know that’s not even the least bit true.

..Because 13 months later I finally made sense of the vision I had as a little girl and turned my dream into a reality which is my business. I now realize the vision wasn’t me working IN corporate, it was working WITH corporate providing my services to CEO’s and entrepreneurs.

I’ll never regret my time as an employee because it gave me the experience, discipline, and knowledge to successfully run my business and live the laptop lifestyle from around the globe.

Was it all smooth sailing? Absolutely not. I made A LOT of sacrifices to get to where I am today and encountered and STILL encounter many setbacks, struggles and stressful days… But no matter how stressful and overwhelming things get, I never for a second consider going back to the 9-5 life.

So, if it weren’t for that push to apply to teach English in Korea and follow through with it, I would’ve never been able to build and scale a business fueled completely by my passions and vision.

I traded in my corporate salary for essentially minimum wage pay, nights out with friends for market research and coaching calls, and traveling for implementing strategies that work as I grow and scale my business.

Now it’s your turn to take a leap of faith. How can I help YOU to achieve your big picture vision and goals for your life and your business? I have 1:1 spots available for my 6-week program waiting for you! Book a discovery call today (it’s free!) and let’s bring your dreams to life.